The Minnesota Timberwolves shocked the NBA world by stealing two games in Denver against Mike Malone's defending champion Nuggets. Anthony Edwards has suddenly become the second coming of Michael Jordan while Nikola Jokic of the Nuggets has been rendered ineffective by a tag team of Rudy Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns, with support from rising star Naz Reid.
Gobert won a prestigious NBA award over Victor Wembanyama, while the Wolves' stifling defense frustrated Jamal Murray to the point of throwing a forbidden object onto the court after his team's Game 2 loss.
Now, the question is how far the Timberwolves can go in the 2024 NBA Playoffs. The Wolves may not become the betting favorite to win it all any time soon, but they have the recipe for a championship if Edwards and his teammates continue to play to their fullest potential.
Here are three reasons why the Timberwolves should be the new NBA title favorites:
1. Anthony Edwards: Future GOAT?
The Timberwolves have had some great players in town over the course of their young franchise's illustrious history, led by franchise all-time leading scorer Kevin Garnett, Karl-Anthony Towns, Stephon Marbury and Terrell Brandon.
Edwards could surpass them all by the time this year's playoff season is over and done with in Minnesota. So far, he's third in the playoffs in scoring behind former regular season MVP Joel Embiid and Big Apple media darling Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks.
Edwards' 54.7% shooting percentage is surpassed only by Anthony Davis and LeBron James in these playoffs, two physically larger players, a stat virtually unheard of as a shooting guard and just part of the reason for the Jordan comparisons.
Edwards is already one of the top players in the NBA. If he can knock off Jokic and the Nuggets, a Western Conference matchup with Luka Doncic or Shai Gilgeous-Alexander could further demonstrate his status as the unofficial best player in the game at the ripe, shockingly young age of 22.
2. Frontcourt Strength in Numbers-
The Timberwolves have quietly put together what could be the deepest and most versatile frontcourt rotation in the National Basketball Association.
Towns is a great scorer and a dangerous shooter who can pull opposing big men away from the basket with ease. He is also quick enough to defend power forwards allowing him to play alongside either Naz Reid or Rudy Gobert, two defensive aces in the paint.
Modern NBA big men might not have the power and strength of guys from the past like Patrick Ewing, Shaquille O'Neal and Karl Malone, but there is more versatility in today's NBA frontcourts than perhaps at any time in NBA history. The variable skills of Towns, Gobert and Reid give Coach Chris Finch the ability to mix and match his lineups with ease, allowing the Timberwolves to play aggressive on defense with guys like Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Edwards and Jaden McDaniels picking up the opposition from the backcourt onward.
3. Defense Wins Championships-
To the layman NBA fan, the Timberwolves have Anthony Edwards, Towns, and not a whole lot else compared to teams with multiple high octane scorers like the Dallas Mavericks and Boston Celtics.
What these fans don't realize is that ‘defense (primarily) wins championships,' or at least used to before Stephen Curry and Jokic began stuffing the stat sheet with outlandish three point shots, assists and rebounds totals.
The Timberwolves are currently fourth in the NBA in defensive stats in terms of points given up, but to the experienced NBA fan, it's easy to see that the T'Wolves are just now warming up. They put the screws to Murray, Jokic and the Nuggets, dismantling their offensive attack with a Trojan horse style of defense that infiltrated Coach Malone's way of attacking and put players like Michael Porter Jr. in precarious spots all game.
Porter Jr.'s ineptitude attempting to put the ball on the deck versus a swarming pack of Timberwolves defenders showed just how bad Malone's team was outfoxed on Monday night.
Minnesota may not have the best defensive at this point statistically in the NBA, but make no mistake about it: they have the most defensive potential of any team, a prediction Gobert made prior to the season that appears to be coming true in due time for a team that should be considered the favorites to win it all at this stage of the playoffs.
We will see if the Wolves have the chops to put away the Nuggets this coming weekend, in the meantime, it's time to give credit where credit is due and Finch's team deserves their flowers for an incredible start to what could be a transformative playoff series win in the West.
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